Content versus Complacent Leadership

There's a lot going on in the world with all the talk of coronavirus, the presidential election coming up this year, and many other things; there is just tons of noise. 

I want to inspire you as a leader just to be sure you stay on point. Focus on your mission and your purpose. If you don't know what your mission and your purpose is, let me help you. I'm so focused on my mission and purpose- To ignite leadership transformations in the lives of others, to inspire, and influence others to live on purpose with excellence and taking action in the right direction in their life. 

I look at things on social media, I listen to some of the things that are going on in the news, but I try not to let that distract me from my mission.

Are you blocking out the noise and keeping yourself in the lane that you need to be running in and draw your teams to that mission? It could be really easy to become complacent in times like we are facing now.  I want to discuss the difference between complacency and contentment. 

The dictionary says contentment is a state of happiness and satisfaction. 

I am coaching leaders and working with high-level executives that are moving organizations forward. In my work with these leaders I find their discomfort in where they are. Many leaders are looking for the next promotion, the next paycheck, or the next thing in their life. Not all leaders, but many leaders. 

I say this from a place of experience, I've been there as well. When I was younger, luckily it was 25 plus years ago, I was looking for that next promotion and pay raise. And I get it, I'm not saying those things aren't important. 

But as a leader what I'm challenging you to do is to be content with where you are, and to focus on where you are. 

I had a business as an executive search consultant. I recruited executives and placed them in other organizations. Some of them were just interested in how much money were they going to make in the next job. They weren't necessarily interested in the role and the impact they could have. And they couldn't describe to me the impact they had made where they were. They were just looking for that next promotion or title on their resume. 

To be a good leader you must be content with and take care of where you are right now in order to lead well where you are right now. 

Doug Larson said that, “The world is full of people looking for spectacular happiness while they snub contentment.” See, in my work with leaders, some think the next job, paycheck, or title is going to create the spectacular happiness. 

True contentment is the power of getting the most out of where you are right now before you strive for more. I'm a striver, I want to be and do more, but true contentment is the power of getting the most out of where I am right now. 

Are you taking care of the people that are under your charge right now, versus looking for a new team? I talk to leaders all the time and they blame their team, ‘if I just had a better team or if my team would just do what I need them to do.’ I look at them and say, “Well, are you holding them accountable? Are you challenging them to do more.? Are you being the leader that can increase your influence and increase your impact with them? Are you being that leader, or are you just looking for the next opportunity? Are you looking for a new team? Because whatever you are today, in the current role that you're in, you'll take with you to the next role.” 

I'm going to pick on marriage relationships for a minute, I don't mean to offend anybody if you've been divorced. I've been happily married for a long time, will be 28 this year. Everyone in my family has had multiple marriages and here's what I know, if we don't take care of the things that are going on in our lives and we get divorced we just carry that baggage with us to the next relationship. 

We must clean up where we are at right now and be content, so that if we do go somewhere else, we can be a great leader. I have online resources to help leaders grow right where they are now. Visit my online store. 

Let's talk about complacency. Complacency is to be overly content without the desire to become better. 

Being complacent is that you don't care that you're self-satisfied, without an awareness of deficiencies or blind spots in your leadership. 

I also work with leaders that have these things going on. They blame other people, like their team for the lack of progress. Yet these leaders have their own blind spots and they've become complacent saying it's not me, it's them. 

Complacent leaders quit paying attention to the details and begin to let little things slide in their own leadership. They let relationships slide thinking they have a great relationship with an individual, so they don't need to really pay attention to them anymore. The next thing you know that great team player, you've lost them. They take their skills, talent, and attitude to a new organization. You're not pouring into them to take care of that relationship. This happens every single day and we have this turnover, and then we blame that individual. 

If you are losing great talent, it's a reflection of your leadership. Your results begin to suffer. And then the boss begins to come down on you and you look at your team. And you blame your team. But it's about leadership. 

When I teach this lesson on contentment and complacency, I'm teaching for myself as well. I'm an entrepreneur and I've been self-employed since 2006. I am never content; I'm always striving for more but I'm learning to be content with where I am, while doing the best with those that I'm serving now and striving for more. 

I've gotten complacent at times in my life where I've quit growing and I say good is good enough. What happens? I start losing ground and I must work a little bit harder to catch up to get back on top. 

The secret to your success is what you do daily in your daily agenda. The little things that you do every single day. I have a FREE TOOL for you at www.dailycompastool.com 

My daily compass tool is a daily productivity tool to help you do the right things and put the big rocks in to focus on those wildly important goals that you have every single day. It has been a game-changer in my life. 

I want it to be a game-changer and yours.